pilasters divide the hallway into a vestibule, central circulation and stair area. A common cornice with bead and reel molded cornice set off by a simple chair rail and dado paneling unites all areas. Decoration continues above the cornice with cyma recta moldings in egg-and-dart and Greek fret and foliated patterns below carved modillions on the cornice. Above the cornice is a triple fascia. The rooms are entered through portals with sliding doors. Each is surrounded by a shouldered architrave and topped with a projecting molded cornice surrounded by foliate consoles. The living room is done in a vaguely Adamesque style. The room side of the portal echoes in wood the design done in plaster on the hallway side. Plaster paneled sgraffito walls rise to a restrained cornice and coffered ceiling. The drawing room is finished in an extravagant rococo mode with extensive pargeting. On the east side, the dining room cornice matches that in the hall, while the ceiling pargeting is a series of bands of various foliate motifs. Its fireplace features a double mantelpiece and oversized Ionic columns. The open cantilevered spiral staircase is balustraded with simple turnings contrasting with an intricate foliate carving on the step area of the stringer. It rises to a dome with curved triangular coffers separated by olive branch carvings and a stained glass window in the oculus depicting hollyhock festoons. Upstairs are the bedrooms. Generally more subdued, they are distinguished by their fireplaces. Each is in a different style, from Classical to Queen Anne. The bathrooms have their original tile, with decorative bands under bull-nosed caps. The third floor, designed as three servants' quarters and three guest rooms, is plain except for an elliptical room done in varnished matchboard. There is an attic and widows walk above. History Thomas Hidden, a New York City businessman who had made his fortune in paint manufacture and real estate, assembled all or part of four dairy farms in the Coleman Station area in 1903. He then retired to the estate and built the house. He was one of the first wealthy New Yorkers to choose the Millerton area, as opposed to neighboring Sharon, Connecticut, and other towns in that state's Northwest Highlands, as a place for a country home. A horse breeder, he found the area an ideal place for that activity, with convenient nearby rail access to the city via the tracks originally built